Carina arrived at work, as early as always; but it seemed like her definition of early was different, this time. She was late!She checked her wrist watch, and the time was 8:15am."Wasn't it just 7:40am at home?" She asked no one in particular."Yes, it was. 7:40am—the time you woke up!" Fiona said behind her.She turned around, and jabbed a finger at her. "Mag! Keep it low!""You are lucky. The boss hasn't arrived yet."She heaved a sigh of relief. She was not ready to face him."Did you forget you had work, today? Hm, lover girl?" 'Oh, goodness! My day is just starting!' she screamed in her head. This time, it was Sonia."Sonia, you too?" She glared at her, which made Sonia laugh."Nice decorations, right?" Sonia asked, looking at the already finished decorations for the party."You're right. They are beautiful. Who's idea was it?""Ms. Ann's."Just hearing her name changed her mood, she recalled last night, her plans…"Carina?" Sonia nudged her with her elbow."Yeah? Sorry, I was
Ann had just completed the project for the upcoming presentation that she was going to make at the Crescent City. Jayden was hell-bent on getting back at Charles."Project B completed!" She said, cracking the bones of her tired fingers. She stretched, then, yawned.He ignored her, and went through the whole project, before giving her a thumbs up. "Good job, Belle."She curtsied, "thank you, Boss Jay."He glared at her, and she giggled. She knew he hated to be called Jay, especially in the office. That was how his mother, and his ex-girlfriend called him. "Except you want to hurt me—which is absolutely impossible, don't call me that!" She sighed. She missed her old pal—the guy with the most beautiful smile, and jovial character. She wished she had not gone to the UK. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you."Jayden just stared at her."Jayden, you are my best friend. You will always be. I don't know how much whatever had happened in the past, hurt you. I guess it was bad enough to change
Alex had been watching Charles closely, and for a while; after Stephanie had visited Jayden at the mansion, he had not seen her with him, anymore. He had seen him go out with someone else—a tall young lady, though he could not see her face clearly, he somehow recognized who she was by her physique.He had followed her, until he got a better view of her face. "Jane Haymes, the Beauty Diva!"Alex called Jayden up, immediately. "Alright. Remember to find more information about the client, too."He hung up, and drove out.They had gone home earlier than usual, as it was their recognition party. They needed to get prepared."Carey. Carey, wait!"Nathan ran towards her, breathing heavily."I…I'm sorry, for what happened earlier today at the cafeteria."She tried to feel the connection, but it seemed like a faint emotional connection. "It's okay, Nate. I was not upset."He smiled, and gave her a hug, as she waved him a goodbye.She boarded a cab with her sister, Fiona. The journey, to he
It seemed as though it was planned. Jayden took slow, but elegant strides to the podium, where he was being called upon. He looked so regal in blue. He could pass as a hot model, as the white shirt hugged his torso, giving off the sexy vibe.All the ladies could not stop staring at him. He looked like a demigod of beauty."Gosh, how can someone be this beautiful?" Tory exclaimed."That's a man. You say handsome, silly!" One of the workers said.As the light shone on him, it added more effect on his blue suit. Carina could not stop gawking at him."Hello, everyone. Welcome to Fernando's Intl. Recognition Award Night Party." He said. His baritone voice seemingly echoing in the ears of his admirers.They all clapped their hands, while whispering inaudible words."Did you hear his voice? Oh my goodness! What sort of man is this?" Tory said, clutching the side of her dress over her chest, as though she was preventing her heart from falling."Tory!" She turned, sharply. "What?"The lady s
"So, they are in a relationship." She had excused herself before the party was over. She needed to know what Ann meant by what she said. She had seen her go to the second floor, so she followed her. Reaching the door that was left open, she could see Jayden bending over someone."See you tomorrow."Jayden left. Carina immediately hid as she saw him coming out of the office. She could not let him see her, as he would think she was stalking him.Ann turned her back to the door, sorting out a few files that were on the table. She needed to edit them to make work easier for her the next day."Do you mind explaining what you meant?Ann stopped what she was doing, and smiled. "Oh, Carina. Hope you enjoyed the party. Congratulations on your award," she said, facing Carina, as she rested her butt on the edge of the table."Thank you. Please, answer my question. What did you tell Nathan?" "Which should I answer, first? I—""Both!""Carina," she called. "First, Nathan came to inquire about
"Good morning, sleepyhead. Better get up, except you want to be late for work."Carina stretched in bed. She sluggishly walked to the bathroom, to brush her teeth, and have her bath."Breakfast is ready, yeah?" She yelled from the room."Yes, princess. Mother has prepared something for us."Her mother was slowly recovering. At least, she was better than before. She was aware of their party last night, she knew they would be tired, so she made breakfast for them. It had been a while since she last prepared meal for her children."Good morning, mom.""Good morning to you, Carey. I made you some chips and milk shakes for breakfast." Carina sat on the table, and began to eat from her plate. "Hm, it's crispy. I missed your food, mom."Her woman looked at her two kids—they were grown up now, eating and smiling. She missed the cheerful laughter, and smiles they always had. The joy they felt, even when they had nothing. She did not know when she started tearing up."Are you crying, momma?" F
Jayden recalled that he mentioned The Jackson's. How is he the Jackson's son, and a brother to Jane Haymes."Haymes is their family name, right?" He asked, still having his gaze fixed on the two pictures."Yes, Haymes. Why?" Alex was never mistaken in his research, and update. He always made sure to confirm, before giving out an information."Haymes was not the name he mentioned, that night. He said he is The Jackson's, and the officer was somewhat afraid. Who are The Jackson's?" "Can I borrow your laptop, for a while?" Jayden nodded, and he turned the computer to face Alex, who sat on the other side of the table. He typed in a few words, and did a quick research."The Jackson's family is one of the richest and influential families in The United Kingdom. Their first son, Mikel Jackson is the CEO of Jack's Automobiles—the biggest automobile industry. His father is late. His mother is still alive, and he has two sisters. Not only are they the richest, but they are amongst the most fear
Sonia stopped in her tracks, too, to think. Had it been she was observant enough, she would also notice that the CEO was not at work."You are right. I have not seen him today, but I'm pretty sure he is good. Maybe, he is just taking a break, or something."Carina did not push the discussion, so as not to arouse any questions."So, tell me. How did you two meet?""As much as this is true, it doesn't work all the time. I mean, it doesn't work on everybody. Alex did not like me, at first. I was literally the last person he wanted to see on Earth. Even with his attitude, I still chase after him. Eventually, he started liking me, and boom! We became a thing, and today is our one year anniversary!" She squealed."Wow! I'm so happy for you, girl. You got yourself a nice man. Congratulations!" She smiled, and hugged her."Oh! Here comes the anniversary guy." Carina sighted him, and Jayden, walking towards the door.Sonia wore her prettiest smile, excitedly waiting for Alex to arrive."Good d
Jayden could not wait to take his bride. Immediately after the wedding was over, they went on their honeymoon.The force of his words left her speechless for a second. "You want to punish me?" She whispered."Of course. For making me wait so long." He replied. And with one sweep of his arm, he lifted her in the air and placed her to sit on the table.She was staring openly at Jayden's mouth now, utterly mesmerized, and he was looking down at her, his gaze hooded, his eyes darkening. He was breathing harder than usual. They were both in the mood, and there was no going back.He picked her up, and placed her gently on the bed, settling in between her thighs.Suddenly he pushed forward, pressing himself against her, while he supported his weight with his elbow.Before she knew it, he had both of her hands in one of his in a strong grip above her head. She gasped at the sudden movement.He leaned forward and took her lips. She moaned into his mouth, giving his tongue an opening. He took
Jayden had only passed out, due to the amount of blood he lost. Alex had called the ambulance, and they took all of them to the hospital.Carina kept panicking, but Sonia and her sister tried to comfort her, but she was not having it.Andrea flew from South Africa, abandoning her projects. She could not make it to the wedding, but after she heard that Jayden had passed out, and was in a critical condition, she left everything and rushed down.They all thought it was Jayden who got shot, and though they tried to act fine, they were praying in their hearts that he should be fine.Nanny Perla and Mr. Thomas came to the hospital, as well, after receiving a call from Carina. They were asked to stand outside, while Jayden and Fernando were taken inside for treatment. Carina's face was covered in tears, some strands of her hair stuck to her face, and it looked disheveled.She didn't mind, all she wanted now was for Jayden to be alright. The doctors assured them that he would be fine, but sh
"You know, I'm supposed to be the heir to all your properties. After all, I am the eldest."He walked around in circles, making weird sounds. His hair was looking unkempt, giving him the exact look of a mentally unstable person."Jayden is my legal son, and by right, he owns my properties. I already gave you what you asked for, whatever Jayden has belongs to him," Fernando asserted, his voice falling flat, his aura, intimidating."I worked with you in that company, so that I can take over and manage the company once you retire. This brat did nothing other than go on an unsuccessful adventure of finding true love. After his failed attempt, you handed over the company to him. Just like that!" Nathan yelled, jealous of Jayden.He had only worked in the company to gain his father's favor, only for the company to be given to Jayden, who initially didn't want the company."You," he said to Jayden, "you took everything away from me. Everything I worked hard to get; the company, his favor," h
Rage burned down Jayden's heart, as he saw the ripped part of the dress, which revealed her thighs."You will do no such thing!" Jayden roared, instructing Alex to track the location.He looked at Fiona, this time, without anger. "I will save Carina. Don't worry, just stay here with your mother, and everything will be fine."He put on a pair of pants, and a shirt, folding the sleeves of the shirt. All that was on his mind now was to save Carina from his hands.There was only concern on his face, he could not imagine what she went through as a rape victim. If Charles was still alive, he would have surely made him pay for the crime he committed.Alex got the location and trailed behind Jayden, whose long legs strode towards the door.Nanny Perla and Mr. Thomas wished him luck. Sonia was there too, but she was not allowed to tag along."We will come back, okay?" Alex hugged her and followed Jayden. He turned on the engine and drove out at a high speed. It was past 7 pm, and there were n
There was a flash of surprise on his face. How could he be his brother? Someone who once worked for him? Someone who cheated the company?It was ridiculous, and if he were ever in any position to make a guess, he would never mention Nathan's name.How could a psycho be his brother? That was absurd! Jayden looked at his father, pain and hatred were visible in his eyes."That explains it, then. You should have thrown me out into the streets, and taken in Nathan, rather than treat me like I was the cause of your own problems! I can't even stand you, you don't deserve to be my father," Jayden thundered, his voice deepening in anger."Jayden, I—""You, Carina…all of you! There is nothing that differentiates you all. You are the same; liars! Here I thought you were really sorry for everything, never knew you were this selfish. The only true family I have is Uncle Lukas, Nanny Perla, and Mr. Thomas. You," he said, jabbing a finger at his father, "are not my father."He didn't wait for any r
The audience gasped in shock. Just a while ago, he was the happiest groom, who could not wait to see his bride, and now, he was calling off the wedding.He didn't pay attention to the murmurings coming from the people. He stepped down, slowly walking towards Carina.Each step he took closer to her made her feel like she was meeting her doom. She glanced at the envelope in his hand, it looked like the same envelope she saw yesterday when she met Nathan."Jay, please, I can explain," she muttered, trying hard to calm him down, but the rage in his eyes didn't seem to become tender.Rather, it seemed like her plea made him more furious. Just a couple of steps away from her, he stopped. His eyes never left her, as though she was going to disappear if he even blinked an eye."You suddenly want to explain now, hm?" He started, "Explain what, exactly? That you are not a virgin? That you lied to me? Or, that you had an ugly past which you hid from me in the guise of being a good woman!" He hu
Stephanie had planned to step out when she saw Alex and Sonia hiding behind the door. She let go of a mischievous smile and went back in. She phoned Nathan and reported her findings to him. He ordered her to send some men to get them. He grinned, knowing that he could even use them better. They were caught unawares, making it easy for the men to get hold of them. Also, they were unarmed, so they could not do anything other than struggle to break free.Just as Carina thought she had an advantage after finding out Nathan's plan, she was ready to come clean.However, her only hope of telling Jayden the truth shattered before her eyes, as she had to sacrifice the truth for her friends.The hefty men brought in Alex and Sonia, with their hands tied to the back. Carina gasped in surprise. She never expected them to follow her."Carina, don't mind them. Go and tell Jayden the truth, don't worry about us. We will be safe," Alex instructed, fighting to break free from the rope that bound hi
Sonia had gotten a call from Alex last night, inquiring about their discussion. She hated to lie to Alex, and she knew that she sucked a lot at lying.Since it was over a phone call, she was able to lie to him, because she didn't have to look at his face.He didn't believe her, so he said he would meet her at CR Restaurant, so they could talk. It didn't make sense to him that what he heard that night kept leading him on to what Jayden told him.Sonia took out her phone and called Alex. She was panicking, seeing that Carina was a few miles away from her, talking to a stranger."Hello, where are you?" She said, immediately he answered the phone."I'm at the parking—""Don't park the car, drive out now. I'll meet you in front of the restaurant," she replied sharply, rushing out of the restaurant to wait for Alex.She kept her eyes on Carina, and she was about to enter the vehicle, following the stranger.Alex stopped right in front of Sonia, who jumped in immediately, without a care to
Carina stared at Alex with widened eyes. This was what she was afraid of. Definitely, Alex would tell Jayden about it, and that meant everything was over.Alex walked closer to them, sitting down on the seat he sat on before he left."Oh! We..uh, we have something we wanted to do; more like content, so I was trying to tell her what to say," Sonia chipped in, covering up the whole thing.Alex knew when Sonia was lying and when she was not. He could tell it by looking into her eyes. There was just something about her statement that he could not believe. Even if he wanted to, it didn't just seem real.First, Carina was not a social media person, and creating content about a rape case was too sensitive. "Yes, yes. She is right, I was…I couldn't recall my part, so I was asking her to help me out," Carina supported, hoping that Alex would believe their lie.He didn't say anything. He shrugged his shoulders, taking Sonia's drink from her. "Hey, give me my drink!" Sonia yelled, punching hi